Rockets respond poorly to adversity in loss to Clippers

Rolling along with an 11-point lead and a to-do list with nearly every line about to be crossed off, the Rockets’ engine misfired.

A few missed free throws, some clanged 3s and a flurry of bad turnovers, and all of a sudden, everything the Rockets could do went far beyond their reach.

Teams go through bad stretches. That is why it is said in the NBA there is always a comeback. The Rockets had one Saturday, going from a 10-point deficit to a 13-point lead in the first half. But when things began to go wrong in the third quarter, the Rockets fell apart.

As different as the Clippers’ 107-94 surge past the Rockets on Saturday was from Monday’s blowout in Los Angeles, with the Clippers falling 30 points shy of that night’s total, there was a similar feeling. The Rockets hit a rough patch and were powerless to do anything about it, turning a bad few minutes into a bad loss.

“We missed some shots and we started doubting,” Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. “We stopped taking some shots we needed to take. We just got nothing going from that point on. We just couldn’t muster any kind of response. It snow-balled on top of itself, which is a bad sign.”

There were playing well for a while, but it took only a few minutes missing open shots and free throws, to change.

When the Rockets led by 11 with five minutes left in the third quarter, they had made 55.5 percent of their shots with 10 turnovers.

In the remaining 17 minutes, they made 5 of 24 shots with eight turnovers. The Clippers took off on an 18-0 run almost by default, and even with the Rockets staying in the game until the final few minutes, by then, the Clippers had more than enough offense to put them away.

“We just stopped playing the way we played to get the lead,” said center Dwight Howard, who had 18 points through three quarters but just three in the fourth. “It takes time. We can’t lose faith now. We can’t lose each other. We just have to stay together, stay focused, stay positive. We lost a couple games and they were ugly. This is a great test for us. We’re going to pull through it.”

Identity crisis

After just seven inconsistent games, they don’t seem to know who they are as a team. When things go badly, do they run pick-and-roll with Howard and James Harden?

After early flashes, that only worked sporadically Saturday, with Harden limited by a bruised left foot and able to go just 4-of-15 from the field.

Do they post up Howard? He was more effective, but only on brief occasions. Do they fire 3s? They were 7-of-26 on Saturday and are shooting 31.8 percent on 3s.

Lacking go-to option

Without that go-to option, it has not taken much to knock the Rockets sideways.

“We had to really battle through … adversity,” guard Jeremy Lin said. “When times get tough, we have to get closer and not grow further apart. That’s all part of the process, the building process.”

Rarely has that been clearer, not just because of when they fell apart, but in comparison to when they were playing well. Then a few bad minutes were more than the Rockets could handle.

“We just need to learn how to keep fighting,” guard Pat Beverley said. “That’s the biggest thing with us. Not offense. Not defense. Just to be able to fight and grind games out.”

Instead, when things have gone wrong – from the Clippers’ barrage on Monday, to hack-a-Dwight on Thursday and the misfiring Saturday – the Rockets have not known how to respond.